Agency

In Which Domestic Bliss is Revealed as a Myth

the following weekend

Domestic bliss. Sure, there might be some combination of personality, temperament and taste that could render a short-term state of mindless nirvana -- but it wasn't built to last. Marital harmony is only possible so long as both parties are willing to accommodate the humanity of the other. Unfortunately, their own humanity dictates their capacity for accommodation. Which is to say, it's in limited supply.

At this stage of their relationship — a couples' humanity having a way of building up over time like mold on shower grout — Berenice could easily pull together a top 10 list of things about Berry that were eating into her bliss.

10. Hates movies with subtitles and sulks if he's forced to watch one.

9. Throws his balled-up socks toward (but rarely into) the laundry hamper.

8. Plays good cop with the kids.

7. Leaves his toothbrush on the sink instead of putting it into the holder.

6. Clears his throat excessively before answering the phone.

5. Doesn't like cheese -- who doesn't like cheese?!?

4. Buys very, very expensive sunglasses.

3. Is always putting her drinking glass into the dishwasher when she was planning to use it again.

2. Snores. Terribly.

1. Might not love her anymore.

If we asked Berry to draw up a list of things he did not love about Berenice, it would look like this:

3. Leaves drinking glasses all around the house instead of putting them into the dishwasher

2. Snores. Terribly.

1. Insisted on the backyard renovation that led directly to the existence of this $58,760 invoice (due in 10k installments over the next month) that was now sitting on the kitchen table.

A short list. But weighty.

The way Berry saw it, his wife's recurrent need to punish him by spending money they didn't have had finally gone exponentially wrong.

In other words, he blamed her.

Here's the thing about blame: although he prefers to think of them as predestined paths, Berry has made plenty of choices which have, in their own way, led to this invoice. He has chosen, and at times, he has not chosen, which is tantamount to the same thing. But because he believes those elections have been mandatory, he honestly doesn't think he bears any blame — and when we think that of ourselves (humanity, again), we especially need someone else to be at fault.

It's patently obvious to Berry that their current situation is Berenice's fault.

Now, things might have shaped up differently if she'd accommodated his need for her to be at fault. If she hadn't been so profoundly aggravated by the lack of subtitled movies and the plethora of balled up socks in their marriage -- maybe she could have said what he needed to hear today, which was, simply, I'm sorry. Or even just, I wish I'd never gone ahead with that backyard renovation.

If she had, what happened next wouldn't have happened. Or, probably wouldn't have happened -- definitives are never useful when predicting fate. But she didn't. And so, he made another (he felt) predestined decision.

Things were delicately balanced at work. Berry had not yet received a signature on the real SOW, but after increasingly panicked calls, emails and even an in-person drive-by out to the Mississauga offices, he had finally secured the information that his client contacts had all jetted off to PharmaCon in Palm Desert for a two-week conference that (he looked it up online) seemed to involve a heavy nightlife and an opulent array of daily 'learning experiences' including 18 holes at Indian Wells Golf Club and full spa day regimens.

So, that explained why they'd neglected to return the documents that would officially kick off the work.

It was in both the client's and Agency's best interest, he reasoned, that they get started. After all, the campaign's launch date was just weeks away. Bolstered by the belief that the actual documents would come in once the clients had returned from their conference, he had taken the initiative and submitted a seemingly signed copy of it.

Wondrously, no one had questioned it at all. The account was opened, and Niall had already drawn 10k into his team's coffers with no trouble.

It helped that Allegra was distracted with what he supposed she viewed as their 'romantic affair,' but which he viewed (this sounds terrible, but there you have it) as little more than a work obligation. He didn't feel honourable about the situation, especially with regard to Berenice, but it seemed to him that he had no choice in the matter now.

Especially now.

Because Berry had just realized where he might be able to access the ten thousand dollars they owed this week to the man Berenice kept referring to as "Papa."